Web Design Development Articles

A webmaster is usually an individual with gained knowledge over a myriad of information issues online or is a website owner. These two kinds of individuals differ as the former gains the title by experience and reputation while the latter receives it by virtue of ownership. A webmaster’s powers are some of the following though there are many others that can be identified elsewhere.

1) Control
As a webmaster, a vast array of capacities are made available or acquired by an individual over a particular website. These capacities are then used by the webmaster to control the goings-on within a website. So control is effected over the website with the exercise of these gained powers over the website.

2) Decision-making
As a webmaster, one of the powers granted is the power to make decisions regarding the site. This can be as simple as wallpaper color to as complex as hyper linking costs. Being a webmaster also allows the ability to make plans in order to buttress the decisions that have been made. These include product lock out guidelines on the site and other little forks in the internet world that require a modicum of intelligence to decide on.

3) Right to use
As the owner of a process or a website, the webmaster is imbued with the right to use the property gained or the knowledge obtained as one sees fit. This freedom has an attendant obligation that the owned ability must be exclusive either by grant or purchase. Thus, a webmaster is able to exercise this right to use whenever and in whatever form.

With all of the web based editors out there, it’s fairly easy to construct a basic startup site. Not that it will probably be the best website in terms of functionality, design, SEO or coding, but for many this is a great way to save some money and begin your internet presence.

However, there are some things to consider pertaining to the design, functionality and that may help your SEO.

Basic rules for layout and design:
Foundation of the Site

1. Choose Page Titles, Description and Keywords carefully. This will help search engines to find you. Don’t leave the top of the page title saying “Welcome” or “Home” this doesn’t tell the search engines anything essential about your site.

2. Keep Navigation User-Friendly. Make sure you have a top or side menu on ALL pages.

3. Keep links to a minimum. Having over a hundred links per page can increase the possibility of your site being viewed as spam.

4. Minimize scrolling. No one likes the page that scrolls on and on.

5. Write for the web. Keep things as short and sweet as possible. Use bullet points and subheadings for readers to quickly scan text.

Images

1. No clip art, animated gifs or scrolling banner elements. These are VERY outdated and even back in the day weren’t cool.

2. All images need to be optimized for web. Don’t put a 16×32 inch photo in and try to resize it down to 3 x4 inches. Your visitors will hate you - especially if they are on dialup.

3. Don’t use Flash. Regardless of how cool it looks, much of the text is embedded in the video file and therefore cannot be “read” by search engines. Only recently, Google is now capable of reading Flash technology, but other Search Engines cannot.

Text

1. Choose a Standard Font. In the World Wide Web, text that displays properly on your screen is limited to standards fonts that EVERY computer has in common. This is a basic list:
a. Arial (sans-serif)
b. Courier (serif)
c. Geneva (serif)
d. Georgia (serif)
e. Verdana (sans-serif)
f. Tahoma (sans-serif)
g. Times (serif)

2. To make matters worse, serif fonts don’t display as well due to the lack of resolution on monitors. Therefore, for clarity purposes, most fonts for website body copy should be a sans-serif font.

3. Should you decide to NOT use a standard font, the person viewing your website will not see the site as it may have been designed, and will default to whatever their browser default font is. What this means is, if you decide to use Papyrus font for your website text (cringing), and if I were to view your website and my computer doesn’t have Papyrus font, it will default to what my browser default font is (Verdana). While this may not sound like a big deal, it could be if you have forced returns or have set your Papyrus font to a very large size to compensate for legibility.

4. DON’T USE ALL CAPS. DO YOUR VISITOR A FAVOR AND USE UPPER AND LOWER CASE - AND NOT ALL CAPITALS. IT’S PROVEN THE WAY WE READ ENGLISH LETTERS IS MOSTLY RECOGNITION OF THE SHAPES OF WORDS. In all caps you lose that, thus slowing down your reader and giving the impression you are yelling at them.

5. Don’t underline text. People will think they are links. Use bold OR italics - Not bold AND italics. One is sufficient.

6. Use standard size fonts for the body copy (10 or 12pt), unless your site is intended for Senior Citizens or those with visual impairments.

7. Don’t copy text directly from Microsoft Word and paste it into your document. Word uses hidden formatting code that leaves tons of extraneous code in your HTML and confuses search engines.

Got anymore tips for do-it-yourself or amateur website builders? Feel free to leave them here.

With the Internet growing bigger every day, a website can be a very useful tool. A small business should create a website in order to expand their clientele and bring awareness of their company. Even someone can create a website to keep family and friends updated with his life.

As you would expect, there is a cost to creating a website. A domain name is purchased on a yearly or monthly basis. The buyer selects the name they would like to buy. Sometimes a buyer can not get the name they would like because someone else already owns it.

When someone creates a website, he faculty essential to resolve if he wants it to be showy and spendthrift or obovate. Either way, a somebody faculty essential to hear how to do both charitable of web programme or live how to realise and use hypertext markup communication (HTML). There are more website that blackbeard how to use HTML for anyone at any age. Also, depending on how often someone wants to pass, there are group who leave programme the website for a fee.

Developing an internet site for a firm results in significant effects on the business it transacts. Virtually everybody makes use of the Net nowadays, so it’s the way to make potential clients know your enterprise exists. As they learn about your merchandise and/or services, they are obviously more likely to purchase something from you. Your business will become more profitable, generally outweighing the cost of your domain name. And selling online makes it simple for your clientele to get the items they desire.

There are no limits to what can be put on a website. You can put your favorite videos and share you photos on your website. They are great tool to keep family and friends updated about your life. People worldwide can visit your site and see your photos. A website can also be used for messages and message boards.

Overall, when someone chooses to create a website, a door of opportunities is opened. A business can use a website to expand the company. In addition, people can make personal websites to write about their lives to keep their family and friends updated on their lives. Videos and pictures can be uploaded to websites. However, there is a small fee to own a website.

Ah, the homepage. Increasingly the first impression of your business, this piece of prime real estate can make or break your cred. So what can you do to keep your visitors reading? Check out these 10 do’s and don’ts to give your homepage the edge.

DO make it blatantly obvious what your website is about

Whilst this in itself sounds blatantly obvious, this is the one thing you need your website to achieve. Together, taglines, menus, headings and a concise blurb can immediately identify who you are and what you do.

DO set the theme and tone for the rest of your website.

Although your homepage does not strictly have to be identical to the rest of your website, it strictly has to set the theme and tone. Consistency between pages means your visitors won’t have to re-learn the way your website works each time they browse to a new page.

The layout grid, menu names, colours, fonts and writing style should not be up for negotiation. This is particularly important for those visitors who don’t land on your homepage upon entry.

DO tie your layout with your call to action.

Think of how you’d like your sections to flow together, then logically organise them on the page to lead to your call to action. Whether you’d like your visitors to sign up to your newsletter or read your blog through to buying a house online, this applies to all websites, regardless of your size.

DO make the text easy to scan.

Stick with short blocks of two to three sentences. Bolden your carefully considered keywords, but don’t be too bold-happy; you’ll annoy rather than assist.

DO make it a cinch to contact you.

Having a contact page with your contact details may not be enough. If your call to action requires your visitor to pick up the phone and make a booking, then make sure the call to action and the phone number is on your homepage.

Go one step further and have this available on every page. Many print a particular page from a website for future reference or to show another. Make it easy for them to contact you without having to revisit your website.

DON’T make me think.

This is what your homepage (actually, your entire website) should do. Steve Krug’s Don’t Make Me Think! chats about how we really use the web and techniques to make our websites a breeze to use. I love this book because it’s to the point, purposely short and a great laugh to boot. You should see my copy.

DON’T try to promote everything.

You’ll only clutter the homepage, bugger the layout and make your visitors think. Constantly remind yourself about the role of your homepage and stick to it.

DON’T have a Flash spectacular as your homepage.

Not only are you making life difficult for search engines to crawl and index the key page of your website, you are driving your visitors to click on one very popular button: skip. Don’t let your visitors start their website experience on the wrong click.

DON’T scare the wits out of your visitors with music.

They won’t be impressed - or likely to visit again. Enough said.

DON’T use images that take an age to load.

Images too big in data size will keep your visitors waiting… and waiting. Use images which are small in size and load quickly yet are sharp and clean to view. Unprofessional images portray unprofessional business.

Good multimedia website design can prove to be the strongest positive factor for certain sites helping in putting your business in higher profit skies! It is a combination of various types of media like animation, audio components, content, photo images, videos and so on.

When a skilled website designer combines all these elements together in proper harmony, results can be very enticing. Right amount and kind of multimedia assimilation in a website can lead it to be excellent looking and interactive. It might sound simpler but developing interactive multimedia sites can require special skills and systematic planning for perfect online presentation.

Selection and combination of these elements is dependent on your company’s aim and the message you wish to convey to the target audience. It can be well decided by your web designer after quoting all your priorities and needed details. Take care that while trying to woo the customers, your multimedia website design does not loose track of the primary message to be conveyed.

Before beginning the project understand what are the specific requirements and the budget. If the exact objectives of the project are clear than crafting the plans for multimedia development becomes easy and hassle-free. Make a plan about what materials and human personnel would be needed for timely completion of project. You can also prepare list of problems that might be faced while execution of the plan and difficulties that can occur so that back-up plan can be made. Therefore effective planning is always helpful in multimedia development.

Planning of multimedia project depends upon your company budget, so it is mandatory to have an idea how much can you spend for such projects. Based on which elements and components are to be inserted in the project, the costing can be calculated. So you can decide which features to be used and which to be left out.

After that follows the designing process, where the website designers frame out designs giving life to the ideas and imaginations. Time period needed for project completion is affected by its size, complexity, techniques used, skills being deployed, etc. The design and its quality are affected by the software being used and how compatible it is with different media forms. The technology of multimedia can be utilized for producing advertisements, brochures, cartoons, product demonstrations, slide shows and so on.

After designing the multimedia website design project, test it for perfection. All the elements and its performance have to be tested with various operating systems. This process would show the designer and let them know if any loopholes are present so that the final product is flawless.

Copyright © 2009

Custom website design has more to do with how you lay out your website and less about hiring a company to set up your site the way you want it. When you first consider what your website should look like, you are going to want to include certain pieces of information. Before you even stop to consider what you are going to write on your web pages, consider what type of web site design layout you want. Once you have determined that, putting the text into place is easy.

A Custom design should include a bare minimum of pages that are important for every website, especially one that is selling a service or product. These pages can always be expanded upon at a later time, but for now, your custom website design only needs to include the most pertinent information. Yes, you have the option of hiring a professional to work on your custom website design in South Wales, but when you meet with their representative to talk about your website you can go in forearmed with your own idea about how your website design should look.

So what should you include as a bare minimum in your design? Here is what we recommend to start with;

Home page - this is the page that tells your customers what you are offering them and it should give them an overview of what they will find on your website.

Products and services - these pages should be the life blood of your custom website design as they are the reason your visitors are surfing your website. You should have a separate page dedicated to each product of service that includes as much detail as possible about your product or service including your price and whether or not you offer any form of warranty or guarantee. Also, make sure you include your return/replacement policy so that your visitors know where they stand.

Contact Us and About Us - these pages need to be included in your website design as they give your visitors important information about where you are, how to contact you, and what your credentials are that qualify you to sell the products or services you are offering. Put your contact information on as many pages and in as many places possible so that your customers can easily get a hold of you.

Frequently Asked Questions - this page should include standard questions and answers that everyone will ask over and over again. Start out with the basic stuff and add to the page as more and more people start to ask the same questions that you have yet to include. By making sure this is a component of your website design in South Wales, you will save both you and your customer time and money.

There are plenty of other pages that you can add to your website as it grows, but by starting out with these few pages in your custom website design you will find yourself off and running in no time.

Yes, it’s true that a professionally designed website initially costs a pretty penny but the keyword in that sentence is “initially.” For anyone who has owned a business, currently owns a business or who is looking to start a business should know that in order to get your company off the ground, you must make an initial investment. A website is one of those “initial investments” that a business owner must make and if used just right, a website can be your company’s best friend.

Have you ever entered a site and been bombarded with paragraphs and paragraphs of content, crazy colors, flash animation and video all at once? Well, take a deep breath because you have just experienced an e-Overload. We are now in a digital era of communication and your web image is vital in the efforts of reaching your target audience.

When it comes to a well-crafted website, make sure you are:

Simple

• An overwhelming website is going to frustrate your customers, driving them away from your website and ultimately your business. A website with one page of useful information will attract customers while getting your company’s vision out to your targeted audience. Keep the downloading speed at 4 seconds or less too.

User-Friendly

• The goal of your website is to attract people and keep them coming back for more. A site that is easy to navigate will do just that. A site map, similar to a table of contents for a book, is a necessary piece to your website. It allows the visitor to quickly search the pages included in your website while creating an easier way for search engines to cache your website pages.

Flash/Graphics

• Including any type of graphic from videos to scrolling pictures to games will maintain the interest of your customers, keeping them on your website longer. It will also showcase the talent and experience that your company will put forth with any project presented to them. A little bit of flash is good because it also lets the audience know that you are familiar with today’s technology.

Contact Information

• Make sure that your contact information link - company name, address, phone/fax number, email address and name of contact person - is clear and can be seen so people will be able to access this information quickly and easily. How else are interested visitors going to get in touch with you?

Consistent and Relevant

• Not normally tagged as being high importance, consistency is key to any successful website. The logo, as well as, the contact information must be in the same spot on every page. Also, if you haven’t revamped your website since 2005, highly consider getting a move on that this year. An up-to-date site will not only increase your online visibility but your customers will have more trust and respect for your business.

Error-Free

• A huge mistake a lot of web sites commit is server incompatibility. With numerous web browsers users have to choose from, companies must build their website to support each platform. Remember to check site compatibility on all possible operating systems including Mozilla, Internet Explorer, Safari and Google Chrome before you set your web site live. Another tip: check spelling and grammar too!

Customer Focused

• Successful websites will always put their customers first. Style and design is not everything in having a website that produces results. Make sure that every page offers something valuable to the customers. When putting your customer’s needs in focus, a good ratio to keep in mind is 75% copy and 25% advertising.

If you keep these 7 tips in mind while designing, revamping or having your website created, then your business could be at the top of its’ class in no time. Good luck!

Designing your own website could be one of the best ventures you can choose to do to make your website much more attractive to your customers and much more informative. You should definitely consider designing your website to make it not only informative but also unique and of course user friendly.

The success of your website will actually depend on the effectiveness of the design and whether or not your customers could make good use of your website. It is important that you consider hiring a professional website designer if you do not necessarily know how to design your website. If on the other hand you have an idea of how you want your website to look like but do not know how to execute it, you can also seek the help of a professional.

When you design your website, you should definitely think about the products and services you are specifically focused on. It is necessary for you to make sure that your website is complete not only with information but also with all the other important things that will make it worth visiting or logging on to.

Another thing that you need to take into consideration is how to make your website design stand out and leave an impact on your visitors and you can definitely achieve this if you are able to set up a concrete plan on how to actually make your website work to your actual advantage without having to spend too much or make things very much complicated for you.

Logos are the best medium for assigning images to products, company and services in a better way. ‘First impression is the last impression’ is the thought behind logo creation. For establishing corporate identity logos in a website plays primary role. Logos prepare a strong base for establishing strong corporate identity of your company. Many benefits are associated with hiring of logo designer and software maker like reducing the turnaround time, higher costs of development and complexion.

While selecting logo design software opt for an initial trial version. It would give the idea whether it suits your idea of logo designing or not. Although trial versions have some limitations when compared to the exact software.

Logo design software with variety of logo templates get higher preference, consider having the option of template gallery update. Reliable logo designing company usually offers money back guarantee, lack of such things give the impression that they might not have satisfied clients.

A good logo software provider gives required contact numbers and email addresses plus live customer care online support. Refer to the product testimonials which comprises of views of the clients who have used the software, this can influence your purchasing decision.

If you want custom logo design software for your business, consider searching the Internet for the software provider. Sometimes making the right selection is not so easy for the customers.

Money is significant factor in deciding it too. But it should not be the sole criteria for making selection. The software that suits your requirements should be given preference, you can check out the trial version. This version has constraint features but is good for testing the usability.

Logos is essential part of any company’s business marketing strategy playing vital part in brand identity establishment. Pay stress on delivering clear information of your company’s products/services to the target clients.

Designing of the logo is one of the first initial activities carried out when a company goes for establishing their market brand image. Logos can be used to fulfill a number of functions, as this small design is the representative of your company. A well-designed logo has to be reliable, proper and novel. It should leave positive impression in the minds of the people, strong enough that people get remind of your company on looking at it.

Copyright © 2009

Choosing a web design agency to create and develop your website is a massive decision which requires a lot of trust on your behalf. Unfortunately there are many disreputable companies out there who may try to take advantage of you particularly if you’re new to promoting your business online. There also are many great companies out there who will be only too happy to create a stunning website tailored to your business requirements and online image. How can you ensure you make the right choice though? A good place to start is to ask them these questions below.

• What do you know about my business?
If you speak to a website design company who are already familiar with the industry you work in then this can be a huge advantage as they will be aware of your target audience. Some website companies do a lot of work in specific industries or specialise in certain types of websites such as the health industry or ecommerce websites. When you approach a design company they should ask you plenty of questions about your business so they can decide what they can offer you and if they can fulfil your requirements.

• Who will maintain the website?
Some design companies create content management systems which allow you to change content or images to keep your website fresh. Other designers will maintain the website for you and will usually charge for this service. Some people prefer to have their designers deal with the maintenance of the website but sometimes if you want to make a quick text change for example you could be waiting for your designer to be free to make the change for you for a while. If they do offer a content management system then check to see if this is included in the price of the design.

• What previous work have you done?
Ask to see examples of past websites they’ve completed - most designers have links to completed projects on their website. See how versatile and unique the designs are and if you like their style. Some designers will be more artistic than others so decide which style is right for your website. A good catalogue of previous work can also increase the trustworthiness of a website company as they’ll be well established with plenty of satisfied customers.

• Can you work to my budget?
It’s likely that you’ll have a specific budget to create your website. When you’ve narrowed your search down to three or four agencies, let them know the size of your budget so you can see what you can get for your money. If you have a smaller budget then it might not stretch to hand drawn images or interactive features for example. Once you agree on a budget and a design then make sure you stick to it and don’t be tempted to agree to extra features which could increase the total price of the website.

• Will we get on?
You don’t necessarily have to ask a web design agency this directly but it’s definitely something to consider as you narrow your search. See how they interact with you in emails, phone calls or in person if you meet them. Also note how available they are to speak to and if they return your messages. There’s no point choosing a company who you don’t feel comfortable with as you’ll be unlikely to get the end result you desire.